Monday, 7 November 2016

FREYA'S CHRISTENING

So some of you may remember way back in July I shared a post about how we were planning on having Freya christened. It was a decision that we thought long and hard about, and now that all the stress and worry is over, I'm so pleased it's something we decided to do. I've shared so much of Freya's life so far on this blog that it only felt right to share her christening day, so here we go!

1) The Service

Freya was christened on Sunday the 9th of October 2016 at 12.30pm in a tiny church surrounded by all our nearest and dearest. Planning a get together like this really does show you who is willing to make an effort with you and your family and who isn't. We had a lot of people who we thought would come along but didn't, and I just hope they know what a wonderful little girl they are missing out on. Anyway, let's get back to the important people who did enjoy our baby girl's day with us before I get into full blown rant mode.

Freya cried throughout the whole thing. The whole thing. She screamed and screamed and screamed like I'd never heard her screamed before. She's usually such a laid back, happy baby and I almost didn't know how to cope with her behaviour, but luckily our vicar was an absolute champ and handled Freya like a pro. I hate to imagine how many screaming babies he's had to deal with in his time!

2) Choosing Godparents

Originally Freya was going to have four godparents; two godmothers and two godfathers, but in the end she was christened with 6 godparents. Now I know that may seem excessive to some of you, but each and every one of those people mean something to our family and each of them hold a very special place in our heart.

From left to right we have: Freya's Uncle Neil and Auntie Kelly, Lewis' friend from school Will, my best friend Sophie, Lewis' friend from college Adam and his wife Katia. I am so glad each of these people agreed to being one of Freya's godparents and I hope she grows up knowing just how lucky she is to have so many people love her the same way we do.

Now I can't mention Freya's Godparents without writing about one very special lady.

This is Sophie. Sophie has been my best friend since we were eight years old. Twelve whole years of friendship. She has been my rock through so many hard times, especially my angst filled teenage years, and I hope I have given her the same support over the years. I am so glad she plays such an important part in my daughters life and I hope that continues.

I want Freya to grow up knowing how lucky she is to know such a strong, wonderful woman. I love her a lot, and I hope Freya will too.

3) The Outfit

Freya's outfit was a bit of a last minute decision. We had planned on having her in a traditional full length, knitted gown with matching booties and a cardigan but we were let down at the last minute (literally 3 hours before the christening!!!) so we decided to dress her in this little number from Next, with a collared vest from M&S underneath.

It definitely wasn't what I had envisaged my baby girl being christened in but we made the best of a bad situation and I still think she looked super cute, especially when we paired her dress with the cutest pair of frilly socks you ever did see!

4) After The Service

After the service we all went back to a local function room and spent the afternoon enjoying each other's company. It was so lovely to have everybody that we care about in the same room. It doesn't happen very often since our families are all over the country but it really was amazing.

We spent a fair bit of time after the service having our photos taken, which didn't go down too well with Freya-Louise! One of Lewis' sisters very kindly hired a last minute photographer for us and I am so grateful she did so. Tom didn't have much to work with on that day, especially because Freya was in such a grump, but he managed to get some really nice photos that we' ll be able to treasure forever.

One of my favourite photos from the day is this one. Four generations of women from my family all together. My dear Nan, my lovely Mum, me and Freya. I normally wouldn't share a photo of myself like this, I had no control over angles or lighting or anything like this (c'mon, we all know our best selfie angle) but I love it too much not to show everyone.

Another wonderful lady I want to mention is this one right here, Beth. I've known Beth over Twitter for about three years now (not as creepy as it sounds, I promise) and I almost feel like we're the same person. She's like my internet soul mate. She is such a strong, inspirational woman and I feel privileged to know her. She was the first person I told when I found out I was pregnant with Freya and it didn't even cross my mind not to invite her to Freya's christening, despite us having never met before. I have no doubt in my mind that Beth will play a role in Freya's life as she grows up, and I know she will be there for all of my babies christenings in the future, too.

5) Entertainment

I was adamant from the get go that I wanted some sort of entertainment for the children and babies after the service. We decided to hire some softplay and boy was it a good idea! Freya absolutely loved it, and so did her Uncle Theo and her big cousin Tom. Theo is 3 months younger than Freya and Thomas is four, so it really did keep quite a big age range entertained.

And that's it! Our baby girl's christening day over and done with! We had such a lovely day and it was so worth all of the stress and spending beforehand. I'd just like to say another big thank you to everyone who came, or sent their well wishes to Freya. We love and appreciate you all.